


from a certain point of view

by dorenamryn



Series: Cloak And Dagger [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Anakin Skywalker Doesn't Turn to the Dark Side, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anakin Needs a Hug, Anakin is a spy, Angst, F/M, Gen, Lots of Angst, Mentioned Ahsoka Tano, Poor Obi-Wan, Suitless Vader, and so does Vader, but the Empire still happens, padme still dies, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-11
Updated: 2017-01-11
Packaged: 2018-09-11 20:42:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9019855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dorenamryn/pseuds/dorenamryn
Summary: In which Mustafar happens, yet some things are irrevocably changed: 1. Anakin Skywalker doesn't Fall.2. Obi-Wan Kenobi doesn't know that.And so, the Empire rises still, and Darth Vader stands at the head of the Imperial Army, but Anakin Skywalker lives, and that is the most important part. While he lives, the Rebel Alliance will always be a step ahead. While he lives, there's hope.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Notes: this series will be more like a collection of short-ish ficlets rather than one novel-length fic. Hope you enjoy!  
> 

Anakin Skywalker breathed, the hot, poisonous air burning his insides. Padmé Amidala stood in front of him, her cheeks shining bright with tears. He gazed at her, and it was as if his lungs were being slowly squeezed, ridding him of breath.

“You don’t have to do this, Ani,” she pleaded. “Come away with me, leave all this behind while you still can!”

“You don’t understand, Padmé,” Anakin replied, his expression like steel. “I don’t have a choice.”

“You always have a choice,” she whispered. “Please…”

Obi-Wan stood in the entrance of the space skiff.

“You brought him here with you,” Anakin said, his voice almost at a shout, his mind a maelstrom of _I have to do this, it’s the only way_.

“No!” Padmé exclaimed upon spotting Obi-Wan. “Anakin— No, I love you!”

“Liar!” he yelled, summoning his anger, his heart sinking with despair, a single thought spoken in his mind;  _I’m sorry, Padmé._

The Force-shove was enough to render her senseless.

Anakin Skywalker stood tall in front of Obi-Wan Kenobi. His heart was breaking. He was barely holding himself together, but he stood tall in front of Obi-Wan Kenobi because it was his duty, and everything was resting on what happened right then and there.

Padmé Amidala’s unconscious body lay between them.

Obi-Wan Kenobi stood in front of him, and Anakin was trying his hardest to keep up the act.

“You turned her against me,” he said, his voice sharp, the tears in his eyes rising, unbidden.

“You have done that yourself, Anakin,” Obi-Wan replied.

“You will not take her from me.”

Anakin let his cloak drop and his hand grasped the lightsaber that had before hung from his belt.

“Your anger and your lust for power have already done that.”

Obi-Wan’s own cloak fell to the ground as he held his lightsaber in his hand. Anakin closed his eyes, reminding himself that what came next had to happen.

“You have allowed this Dark Lord to twist your mind until now,” Obi-Wan continued, the tone of his voice almost breaking Anakin right then, “…Until now you have become the very thing you swore to destroy.”

Obi-Wan placed his hand on Padmé and Anakin made sure to sear the memory of his two friends into his mind for only Force knows when he would see them again as Anakin Skywalker. His outside demeanour, however, remained unchanged.

“Don't lecture me, Obi-Wan. I see through the lies of the Jedi. I do not fear the dark side as you do," Anakin said, his voice hard, his mind screaming _lies, lies, lies,_ and then, _duty._  "I have brought peace, justice, freedom, and security to my new Empire.”

“Your new Empire?” 

“Don't make me kill you.”

“Anakin, my allegiance is to the Republic... to democracy!” Obi-Wan said, his voice strained, his eyes widening slightly with horror.

“If you're not with me," Anakin stated, ignoring the tight feeling clawing away at his heart, "then you're my enemy.”

“Only a Sith Lord deals in absolutes," Obi-Wan replied, his voice sighing with tired resignation. "I will do what I must.”

Anakin wanted to drop the pretence and wrap his arms around his friend because he just wanted everything to be over, but no, he couldn’t do that because he had a duty to the Jedi, to democracy, to the galaxy. He had a duty to fulfill, so instead, Anakin donned the mask of Darth Vader, and said three words that forever sealed his path.

“You will try.”

And so, the battle had begun. Anakin and Obi-Wan (no, Obi-Wan and Darth Vader) struck blow upon blow against each other (with each blow, Anakin’s heart broke a little bit more). Obi-Wan’s eyes were filled with determination, disbelief, hurt, and a never-ending torrent of _how could you do this?_ and it was all Anakin could do to keep up his act, of Darth Vader, of a cold, unfeeling Sith, but he oh-so-badly wanted to be done with these lies, though he knew he could not, so he charged forward and used his guilt to strike blow upon blow onto Obi-Wan’s blade.

Somehow, they ended up on a lava river, and when they did, the Force screamed. Anakin knew now that this was the last time he would see Obi-Wan in the many years to come.

“I have failed you, Anakin,” Obi-Wan said, floating a few metres ahead of him. “I have failed you.”

“I should have known the Jedi were plotting to take over,” Anakin yelled in response over the sound of the lava flowing steadily below them. Obi-Wan looked stricken. 

“Anakin, Chancellor Palpatine is evil!” He shouted, and right then, Anakin could see the torturous grief in his Master's eyes. 

“From my point of view, the Jedi are evil!” Anakin roared back, his heart wrenching painfully. 

“Then you are lost!” Obi-Wan practically screamed, and Anakin could almost make out the tears in his eyes, glinting in the light from the river of fire. Anakin struck down his growing guilt, instead telling himself yet again that this had to be done. 

“This is the end for you, my master,” Anakin said finally, the words like poison in his mouth. He leaped over Obi-Wan and brought his lightsaber down onto his master’s, effectively locking their blades. _Please, Obi-Wan, end it_. 

As if hearing Anakin’s unsaid prayer, Obi-Wan jumped to the bank, his boots almost falling through the dark sand.

“It's over, Anakin. I have the high ground,” said Obi-Wan, his eyes desperate.

“You underestimate my power,” Anakin responded, his voice adorned with an icy edge, his tears overflowing, the Force a storm around him.

“Don't try it,” warned Obi-Wan. Anakin took a deep breath.

Time stopped.

Anakin Skywalker jumped.

Obi-Wan Kenobi’s lightsaber swung.

Anakin twisted out of the way while in midair, avoiding the blade and landing in a roll.

Suddenly, the platform from which Anakin jumped gave in to the heat, and with a loud bang, exploded.

“Argh!”

A large piece of shrapnel buried itself into Anakin Skywalker’s back and he fell down into the sand, thankfully not close enough to the lava to be in any danger of burning. His lightsaber was still clutched in his right hand. The harsh sand beneath him burned, and Anakin grit his teeth.

Obi-Wan Kenobi stood above.

“You were the Chosen One! It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join them!” He screamed at his best friend. “Bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness!”

“I hate you!” Anakin yelled from the ground, not really meaning it, more focused on the Force and the pain of the shrapnel buried in his back.

“You were everything to me, Anakin. I loved you.”

Anakin pulled the Force around him.

It was time for his most elaborate trick.

It was said that long ago, some Force-users could bend the Force to their will and project images onto the minds of others, show something happening when it actually wasn’t.

And so, Anakin Skywalker gathered his strength and concentration. The shrapnel in his back hurt like hell, his lungs burned and he almost couldn't breathe, but he continued, for everything was counting on this moment _right here_.

Anakin closed his eyes and the took the storm the Force was brewing around him, willed it to seem like his robes had caught fire and screamed, a heart-wrenching, painful sound, and it was only a half-pretence, for right then he felt like he was being split in half and his entire body felt like it was burning even though it wasn’t, and yet he had to do this _for it was his duty_. The imaginary smoke burnt his nostrils, and through the haze of the non-existant flames, he could see Obi-Wan Kenobi as he walked away. Anakin continued to scream, yet Obi-Wan’s words echoed in his head.

_ “You were my everything to me, Anakin. I loved you.” _

The words pierced his heart, cut at his mind. The bond between them had been severed, the reality of it bringing Anakin's mind even more pain. He'd never felt so alone, but there was no going back. Anakin let his screams die down as Obi-Wan’s form vanished over the ridge and finally let his mind settle. 

_ I’m sorry, Obi-Wan. I’m so sorry. _

Then, Anakin Skywalker, his breaths heavy and ragged, took out a small black comm from an inside pocket in his robes and dialed.

“The mission— Was a— success… Master… Yoda,” choked out Anakin, biting back a scream. “I’m in.”

The small projection of Yoda nodded his head. “Coming, Obi-Wan is, with your wife. Pain in the Force, I feel. Hurt, are you?”

“Ahh— I’m, okay,” Anakin said with difficulty (oh boy was that thing in his back a _bitch_ ). “I’ll be… fine. And… Ahsoka? Have you— reached her?”

“Received the message, your former Padawan has, and help, she will. Done a great deed for the galaxy, you have,” Master Yoda replied. “Await your information, we will.”

“Th—Thank you… Master,” he gulped. “For— everyth…thing. I will not… fail… you.”

And with that, the transmission ended. With great effort, Anakin turned towards the lava below him and chucked the comm. His back was going to need surgery, and the last thing he wanted was for Sidious to find that comm on his self. Anakin grit his teeth and grunted.

For Anakin, the next few hours (or however long it was, he had no idea), were spent lying on the ground and slipping in and out of consciousness, slowly sliding down, his body edging ever closer to the lava river below.

In another world, he would have lain there, a husk of what he used to be, living solely off his anger and hate. In another world, he would be forever trapped in that nightmare of a life-support machine. In another world, he would have been been dead. When his pant leg caught fire, he felt like he was going to die, but his mind screamed; _no you can't die, not now! Not when you're so far in and the entire galaxy is depending on you!_

“Over here!” He heard a voice call out, and as the fire spread up to his already-painful back and side, he found he couldn’t even scream. But before it could spread further, the flames were being put out.

“Anakin! Anakin! Here he is. He's still alive. Get a medical capsule, immediately,” a familiar voice called. When Anakin opened his tear-filled eyes, the first thing he saw was Palpatine’s dark cloak. He was being lifted onto a stretcher. Clone troopers walked alongside him, and if he turned his head, he would not be surprised to find Palpatine there. Anakin closed his eyes. There was no turning back now.

* * *

The asteroid of Polis Massa was not usually a busy place. As of right now, it was. The residential sector was swaddled with people, as ships of Jedi younglings that Anakin had snuck out of the Temple arrived in groups, and kept arriving. Senator Organa’s ship had arrived a bit after the first ships from the Temple. The younglings and the other Jedi were relieved to see Master Yoda alive, so when they caught wind of his arrival, they flocked the little green alien. Said little green alien was currently on a mission, for Obi-Wan had just arrived from Mustafar. The ancient Jedi Master rushed through the medical facility to the room where they had taken Padmé Amidala, according to Bail Organa.

Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Bail stood in the observatory overlooking the operating room. Obi-Wan was pacing, Yoda was pensive, and Bail was stroking his goatee. A droid rolled over from within the operating room.

“Medically, she is completely healthy. For reasons we cannot explain, we are losing her,” it said in its monotone electronic voice.

“She's dying?” Obi-Wan exclaimed. Yoda stood to the side, thinking. Anakin would find out. He would find out, and he would not be happy.

“We don't know why. She has lost the will to live,” explained the droid. ”We need to operate quickly if we are to save the babies.” 

“Babies?” Bail asked, his hand momentarily freezing.

“She's carrying twins,” replied the droid.

“Save them, we must. They are our last hope,” Yoda stated solemnly. _They are Anakin Skywalker’s last hope_.

“I want to go in,” Obi-Wan said. “It’s the least I can do… And Anakin…”

Obi-Wan trailed off, shaking his head. He followed the droid back into the room, leaving Yoda and Bail in the observatory.

“Did he do it?” Bail asked in a whisper.

“Successful, Anakin was,” Yoda replied. “Know, Obi-Wan cannot. Never agree, he would, if knew that sending his former Padawan into the fray, we were.”

Bail nodded.

“And what of Padmé?” He questioned quietly. “How is she dying if we made sure that she would get off Mustafar alive?”

“Know that, I do not,” Yoda replied, looking back to the operating room where Obi-Wan stood, holding a newborn in his arms. “A stirring in the Dark Side, I feel.”

"How about the survivors from the Temple?" Bail said, his voice quiet. "Kenobi is not to discover them if the plan is to succeed."

"A point, you have," responded Yoda, nodding. "Send them into hiding, I will. A few planets I know of, at which safe for a time, they will be. Go now, I shall. The younglings, away they must go."

And with that, the old Jedi Master stood from his seat and silently left the room, leaving Bail to follow him into the hallway.

Obi-Wan stood beside the operating table, his mind a myriad of emotions, despair, sorrow, betrayal, but as he held Anakin’s son, his best friend’s son, all he thought was; _Anakin should be here_. But, Anakin couldn’t be here, for he had chosen his path. The path of the Dark Side. With a pang, Obi-Wan realized that Anakin would never get to see his children grow, and for some odd reason, that made Obi-Wan inexplicably sad. So, while he held Anakin’s son in his arms he instead wished that it were Anakin standing in his place. 

A second cry rang out.

“It’s a girl,” came the tinny voice of the medical droid.

“Leia,” Padmé whispered. “Her name will be Leia.”

Obi-Wan was handed the second infant, and his feeling of sorrow only grew. He knelt down to be closer to Padmé, so that she could see her children at least once.

Padmé’s breaths were heavy. It wasn’t long now, Obi-Wan knew. She met his eyes.

“Obi-Wan— Anakin… There’s good in him,” she whispered. “There’s… good…”

And then, her head went limp, and her chest ceased its movements.

Padmé Amidala was dead.

* * *

Far away, on Coruscant, Anakin Skywalker lay on the operating table. Droids pulled apart his Jedi robes, discarded his lightsaber and began the surgery to remove the large chunk of shrapnel that had embedded itself deep into Anakin’s back. He screamed, his voice raw from all the screaming, because _Force_ , it hurt. His lungs were on fire, as was every other part of his body. He writhed as the restraints chaffed his skin and the droids continued tearing through his flesh, and oh why in the seven hells did Palpatine not know what anesthetics were?

It lasted for hours on end, the screaming, the pain, the endless torture for Anakin as he tried to free himself, but no, it wouldn’t end… It kept on going, the sounds of the droids moving around the room, doing everything except delivering painkillers, and soon it became too much, and thankfully, Anakin finally passed out.

He woke up in a hospital bed. A faint beeping noise could be heard from one machine or another, for _holy hell_ there were a lot of machines. Anakin immediately ripped the breathing mask off his face. 

“Perhaps it is best to leave that on,” said a voice. “You are still recovering, are you not?”

Anakin shook his head and finally noticed Palpatine sitting on a chair at his right. Looking at the man who was now supposed to be his Master, Anakin suddenly felt sick. And he also felt as if something was very, very wrong.

“Where is Padmé?” He rasped, surprised at how weak his own voice sounded. “Is she alright?”

The sinking feeling only grew the longer Palpatine waited to answer.

“It seems,” Sidious said, “in your anger, you killed her.”

And with those three words, Anakin finally broke down. His mind was a sandstorm, the winds moving the grains of sands at such high speeds it was enough to flay the flesh off a person, leaving nothing but bones behind. She was dead. His child was dead. He clutched his head while his heart drowned in his sorrow, the Dark itching to sink its teeth into his body, but somewhere deep in his mind he repeated his mantra; _my name is Anakin Skywalker, I am a Jedi Knight. My name is Anakin Skywalker, I am a Jedi Knight. My name is Anakin Skywalker, I am a Jedi—_

“I couldn’t have,” he whispered, his voice hoarse.

“She was alive, I felt it,” he exclaimed, coughing. He had made sure she was alive. How was she dead when he had done everything in his power to prevent that from happening?

Sidious was hiding something. It shouldn’t have surprised him, but all Anakin could feel was anger. Sidious was hiding something, and it had to do with Padmé’s death. He had to contact Yoda. He needed answers. But not now, as right now, he was wearing nothing but a hospital gown and siting next to the most powerful man in the galaxy.

He was in no position to do anything except wait. He needed patience, time.

He was going to have to get a lot better at being patient.

Sidious left him soon after that, telling him to get dressed and then to go to the bridge.

Anakin sighed with a solemn resignation, and his anger, bright and burning as it had been, suddenly left him. Nothing would bring Padmé back from the dead, and so instead, a deep weariness began to settle in his bones. When Sidious had told him about her death, he'd felt pain, as if he were drowning in it. However, Obi-Wan's words from what seemed like a lifetime ago stopped him.

_"All things end,"_  the echo of Obi-Wan's voice reminded him. _"There is no more we can do to prevent death than we can to alter the Force's will. Don't think of it as an end, Anakin. The dead are going home."_

He hadn't fallen into the deathly grasp of the Dark Side. He couldn't afford to. And yet, he had to make Sidious believe that he had, so he took the dark energy brewing around him and cloaked his mind with it. He had never thought that he would ever use the Dark Side as a shield, but here he was. Underneath it all, Anakin's presence was as bright as a thousand suns, but muted due to the endless pain that he knew he would be subjected to over the years to prevent his position from being known.

He stood, carefully. His chest, back, and side were wrapped in bandages, although it didn’t hurt to breathe anymore. His leg was covered in a bandage as well, and Anakin could feel the soothing cool of bacta beneath it. He winced when he stood up, his leg almost collapsing beneath him. His Jedi robes were nowhere to be seen, but his lightsaber was lying atop a small pile of clothing in the corner of the room. There was lots of black, and there was a new gauntlet for his right hand. He slipped all of it on, securing the dark cloak over his shoulders and pulling up the hood.

Before he left, Anakin Skywalker looked at himself in the mirror.

_ My name is Anakin Skywalker. I am a Jedi Knight. I’m pretending to be Darth Vader. I’m supposed to be a Sith Lord. My wife is dead, my child is dead, my best friend thinks I’ve betrayed him. I am a spy for the not-yet-formed Rebel Alliance. I am the Chosen One. I will restore peace to the galaxy, or I will die trying. My name is Anakin Skywalker. I am a Jedi Knight. _

Darth Vader set off to face the music.

* * *

Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Bail sat in an empty conference room.

“Separate the children, we must,” Yoda concluded. Bail raised his head, and Obi-Wan continued to stroke his beard thoughtfully.

“My wife and I can take the girl,” Bail said, looking to Master Yoda. “We have always wanted a daughter. She will be safe, and loved, with us.”

Yoda nodded. Obi-Wan looked up to meet the old Jedi Master’s gaze.

“Take the boy to Tatooine, to his family, Obi-Wan will,” said Yoda pointedly. “Safe there, he will be.”

Obi-Wan looked down, but nodded.

“And you, Master Yoda?” He asked.

“To Alderaan, I will go. Help with the Rebel Alliance, I can. Watch over Leia, I must,” the small alien replied. “Hide in the mountains, I will. Steeped in the Force, the peaceful planet is.”

“You can come with us, on my ship,” said Bail. “You will be be able to fly through undetected that way.”

Yoda nodded.

“Settled it is, then,” he finished. “Dark times ahead, I sense. But hope, not lost, it is.”

* * *

Obi-Wan settled into silence as his small ship entered hyperspace. The ship itself was barely larger than a starfighter, a small shuttle, perhaps it could be called. An old model, worn, but that didn't matter. It was inconspicuous. No one would think it out of the ordinary, and that was the only thing that mattered.

The small child cradled in Obi-Wan’s arms squirmed in his sleep, the tiny features scrunching into a frown.

“Shhhh,” whispered Obi-Wan, sending waves of warmth through the Force. “It’ll be okay, little one.”

It was said more for his own sake than the baby’s. 

Obi-Wan was haunted. The look in Anakin’s eyes as he swung his lightsaber at Obi-Wan. It was grief, torture, pain. It was rage, but behind it, purpose, and somewhere, deep in Anakin’s unforgiving gaze there had been panic, just for a fleeting second, when Obi-Wan had almost killed him mid-jump.

Obi-Wan was sure he would have missed it had he not known Anakin so well. Hell, he had practically raised the boy. There was no one in the universe who knew him better than Obi-Wan Kenobi.

At least, Obi-Wan had thought so. Now, however, he was unsure. How could Anakin do that? How could he throw away years upon years of training as a Jedi and his family and his friendship? Hadn’t Anakin known how much Obi-Wan loved him? Hadn’t he realized how big of an impact he’d had on Obi-Wan’s life? How could he have become the very thing that he had tried his hardest to avoid becoming?

_ Hadn’t he known how much Obi-Wan loved him? _

Obi-Wan knew that Anakin’s screams would forever be seared into his memory. The raw agony he’d felt emanating from his best friend was enough to break Obi-Wan’s heart a thousand times over. When Anakin had started burning and Obi-Wan turned away, a part of him fell and burned with the only person he cared about more than life itself.

Luke Skywalker stirred, and Obi-Wan gazed upon the infant.

Maybe there was hope for the galaxy yet.

* * *

Darth Vader stood on the bridge of a Star Destroyer. The slightly-shorter form of the now-Emperor Palpatine stood at his side.

A skeleton of a machine floated in space in front of them.

"I have a gift for you," Palpatine said, turning to Anakin. "Come here, my apprentice."

Anakin followed Palpatine as he was lead away from the bridge and into back into his quarters, where there lay a shiny armour, dark robes with traces of leather, and the centrepiece, a large box.

"Your attire now is only temporary," Sidious explained. "These robes you wear now are not fit for second-in-command of the Empire. These, you will find to be a bit more... Imperial."

Anakin stood, his face expressionless, but his mind was a whirlwind, waiting with bated breath for the other man _(not man, monster)_ to continue.

"And this," Sidious gestured to the box, "will become a symbol of fear to all those who dare appose us. Come, Vader, take a look."

Anakin approached, slowly, his blood turning to lead in his veins, his heart sinking even lower as he came closer to the box (which was roughly the size of a human head, how had he not noticed?) and when he opened it... A dark mask stared back. Soulless black eyes, black metal polished to a shine, a helmet set on top. There were grates where a mouth should have been. 

Anakin was paralyzed.

"You will wear it at all times in public," Palpatine continued, but Anakin wasn't listening, not any more. His heart pounded in his ears as the mask stared back at him.

Suddenly, he couldn't breathe.

And in that horrifying moment, he realized just how far he had to go, what sacrifices he had tomake, for the galaxy, the future of the Jedi, the Republic. The cost that he had to give, for peace.

_ My name is Anakin Skywalker. I am a Jedi Knight. _

**Author's Note:**

> Side note about Alderaan; I know that there are a bunch of different theories as to why Leia's Force-sensitivity isn't sensed by the Empire, but my take in this verse is that Alderaan (like Dagobah in canon) is a planet that's immersed in the Force enough that Leia's Force-presence can be hidden (also Yoda's, hence the reason I'm putting him there). 
> 
> I've got quite a bit planned for this verse, so stay tuned! If you've got any questions or comments, you can always leave a comment on here and/or reach out to me via my [tumblr](http://vortexoftime.tumblr.com/). For more on this verse, there's a [tag on my tumblr](http://vortexoftime.tumblr.com/tagged/cloak-and-dagger) as well.
> 
> Dedicated to Carrie Frances Fisher. May the Force be with you, always.


End file.
